Freshman Year
by itsawitch
Summary: A collection of one-shots involving the Kenshin-gumi during their first year of high school. All based off of my personal experiences.
1. Pick up lines in History

Hola! Bonjour! Hello!

This is just a collection of stories I've decided I wanted to piece together, all based off of my freshman year. Perhaps it will even include Sophmore, Junior, and Sernior years. Every little chapter will begin with a small introduction, setting the stage, if you will. Please enjoy, read and review!!

I do not own Rurouni Kenshin.

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They had came to History, trudging through the hallways to go threw what was sure to be a dreadful, long day. Kaoru nearly groaned when she saw the substitute, their school had a habit of finding only the worse substitutes in the state. It seemed as though this would be a long hour and a half.

Although, as it turned out, iut wouldn't be. The substitute, Mr. Near, apparently had no idea about the lesson plans. And thus, what seemed like it would be a long day, instead turned into a free period, allowing all the people in the class a free reign to do whatever they wished.

Kaoru sat next to her friends, Megumi and Misao, flipping threw her History book and chatting. This, is how our story of the Kenshin-gumi's freshman year begins.

* * *

"If you were a picture, I'd stare at you all day."

Misao and Kaoru looked at each other, before looking back at Megumi, whose head was on the desk, her body shaking, and occasional gasps for breath being the only sign that she was laughing instead of crying. Kaoru turned away from the two boys, calling out pick-up lines to the third, who was looking away, trying to act uninterested. A corner of his mouth lifted up slightly, the only indication that he found them amusing.

"If you were a cloud, I'd watch you change shapes all day," the rooster-head named Sano called out to the redhead, and the entire classroom burst out laughing, including the substitute teacher.

Doodling absently in her notebook, Kaoru looked up again, flashing a grin at Misao, who was covering her mouth in an attempt to keep from laughing too hard, her cheeks flushing bright red.

Kaoru's bright blue eyes looked once again at the redhead, who was grinning fully now, turning his head slightly to the side, his shoulders shaking. She looked back down at her doodle, and turned the page of her notebook, beginning to draw absently as another pick-up line rang out in the room.

"If you were a fire, I'd jump into you, just to feel your warm embrace," called out a boy with equally as odd hair, sweeping up like a broom. Cho. Chuckles and giggles, along with soft snorts and muffled laughter erupted from all over the room, as Sano retaliated immediately,

"Hey Kenshin, if you were a fireman, I'd set my house on fire, just so you could come over."

Barely having time to breathe, Megumi, Kaoru, and Misao all doubled over, giggling and laughing. Wiping a tear from her eye, Kaoru looked up again, and heard the most wonderous sound.

Kenshin laughed, a beautiful, mellow sound that made her heart speed up to an almost uncomfortable rate. A flush covered her cheeks, and she looked down before his violet eyes could meet hers.

Cho and Sano laughed loudly and nudged each other, guaffing, "About time he starting laughing, eh?" Cho said, grinning. Sano leaned forward, ready to make the kill.

"If you were my nose, I would blow you," followed by, "Sexual undertones, yes.."

She nearly fell out of her seat, and Kenshin laughed out, unable to contain himself. The substitute, Mr. Near, chuckled, before looking away, not wishing to condone such a horrible pickup line.

Misao and Kaoru locked eyes, and their lips moved in synchronization, mouthing the words _Sexual undertones, yes, _And pumping their fists up, before erupting in a tumble of giggles.

Megumi looked up, calling out, "Oh Ken-san! Don't you love all the attention you're getting?"

The redhead flashed a grin, giving a small, playful wink, "Why yes, Takani-dono, I just wish the two flirting with me weren't such large, burly men."

"Hey Kenshin!" Cho started off again, "If you were a house, I'd move into you right away!"

Kaoru flushed, the worst image running threw her head, and she looked down, about to continue doodling, when Sano started again, barely giving her a second to calm down her smile.

"Hey Kenshin, if you were extra credit, I'd do you during school."

Her stomach hurt from laughing so hard, and she had to hold her sides to keep from falling apart. Tears were starting to wet her cheeks, and she wiped them away, trying not to give the impression she was sobbing.

Kaoru met eyes with Misao long enough to lean over, looping her arm over her shoulder, ducking her head down to whisper seductively, "What's that on your shoulder?"

Misao flushed and wiggled away, laughing, "Kaoru-chan! Only Aoshi-sama can do that to me!"

Rolling her azure eyes, she smiled sweetly at Kenshin, who was biting his lower lip, as though to keep from laughing too hard. It was, however, useless, as yet another line came out from Sano.

"If you were a pair of short shorts, I would wear you, no matter how short they were."

Cho retaliated immediately, without pause, "If you were Sano wearing a pair of short-shorts, I would still respect you, because you are Kenshin."

The class was silent for a second, as they imagined Sano in short-shorts, leg hair and all. The entire class seemed to flinch simultaneously, before bursting out laughing. Megumi made a small noise, "Ew!"

All the girls giggled secretly, and Kaoru, once again, snuck a look at the flushing boy, who was the point of these pickup lines.

Kenshin's face was a shade darker than his hair, and he grinned at Megumi, who was talking to him. Kaoru barely paid attention, looking back at her doodle, erasing the cat she had been drawing, and drawing him instead. Instantly, she began to go into a drawing-mode, and for a few seconds, it looked as though she wouldn't break from it.

"If you were a chair, I'd sit on you. Oh wow, more sexual undertones."

Her lips rolled back as she snickered, trying not to look up at anyone other than her muse. She spoke quietly, but he turned at his name, so she knew he heard, "Hey Kenshin, if you were an acne system, you would work significantly better than Proactiv."

Megumi and Misao broke out into giggles on either side of her, and Kenshin chuckled, ducking his head down enough that his hair covered and hid his eyes. A blond girl on the other side of the room took her initiative, "Kenshin! If you were a box, I'd put stuff in you."

Sano elbowed Cho, "Kenshin! If you were a garbage can, I'd put only the finest garbage in you."

Cho, "Kenshin! If you were an endangered animal, I'd put you in a zoo, so that you wouldn't die."

Sano again, "Kenshin! If you were an endangered animal, I'd put you in a nature preserve, because the zoo is a cruel, cruel place."

Cho flashed a grin, "And you would know eh? How many times have you been put into a zoo, rooster-head?" The two young men chuckled and grinned at each other, while the three girls on the right of them giggled secretly, loving to eavesdrop.

Megumi peaked over Kaoru's shoulder, looking at her secret portrait of Kenshin. Dropping her voice down an octave, she murmured softly into Kaoru's ear, "Starting to eye Ken-san?"

Kaoru's cheeks flushed with embarassment, "N-No." Hastily, she turned the page of her notebook, flashing a secretive look at Megumi, who gave her signature oh-hohohoho! laugh, imaginary fox ears popping on top of her head.

"Shut up Megumi," she muttered softly, using her hair to cover her face, leaning forward on the desk, covering up her notebook. More giggles erupted from Megumi, before Sano made another pickup line, completely drowning her out from Kaoru's hearing.

"If you were a studded belt, I would use you to beat my children."

It was slightly past the line, so all the freshman in the class started laughing, nudging at each other, repeating the line in amazement. Kenshin laughed, and his head went down on his desk. The substitute coughed, and most of the students looked down at their books, flipping them open to a random page, pretending to read. A few errant snickers and giggles drifted, before the room began to talk again.

Misao smiled sweetly, looking up at the ceiling, her long, black braid over her shoulder as she hummed.

"What's up, Misao-chan?" Kaoru asked, smiling at her daydreaming friend. The petite girl's cheeks flushed and she began to stutter out an explanation. The door of the classroom opened, interrupting her excuse before it even started.

"Hey! What the hell is going on in here? Shut up, I'm trying to teach a pottery class!" A large man called out, quieting the class. Kenshin snickered, trying to disguise it as a cough. Everyone found it rather amusing that Hiko taught pottery, especially after his long career in kendo.

The redhead received a water bottle thrown at his head, which incited further laughter from everyone in the class. Hiko-sensei reached over, tugging on his red ponytail, "Shut up, baka."

He was just about to leave, before he pointed at the chalkboard, where three girls were drawing and writing, basically making it looked pretty, "And stop writing on your teacher's chalkboard."

The door slammed closed, and Mr. Near sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose, before giving a small laugh. A stiff silence followed as the girls began to erase what had been written, muttering.

Sano broke the silence, "Hey Kenshin, if you were written on a chalkboard, I wouldn't erase you, no matter what any teacher said."

"Shut up Sagara!" Hiko yelled from his room across the hall. Kaoru giggled, whispering to Megumi softly, "That man has super hearing."

The entire room began to laugh again, and soon there was a comfortable buzz of conversation that filled the area, along with the occasional laugh as people began to remember Cho and Sano's pickup lines.

"So, Misao-chan, what was your favorite pickup line?"

"If you were a butterfly, I'd catch you in a jar, make sure I poked holes on the top of it so you could breathe, and keep you forever," Misao said, smiling, "I'm going to say that one to Aoshi-sama, do you think he will like it?"

Megumi giggled, "I'm sure he will, I just doubt he will give you any response, that damn ice block."

Misao pouted, resting her chin on her hand, thinking, "What about you, Kaoru-chan?"

"If you were a studded belt, I would use you to beat my children," Kaoru said, smiling, "I have to use that one sometime. Megumi, which one was your favorite?"

Megumi was about to say something, her mouth open in response, when Cho interrupted her, calling out to the redhead again, "Hey Kenshin! If you were a hockey stick, I would grasp you daily."

Megumi grinned while the class began to laugh, and mouthed out _That one. _Kaoru nodded and smirked when her friend's eyes closed halfway, spacing off.

Flipping back to her earlier page, she nearly gasped as she remembered what she had been drawing before. Eyes looked back at her from the page, and a small, warm feeling ignited in her chest, and her blue eyes looked up at her true muse.

Really, her drawing was doing him no justice.

Sighing, she had just begun to draw again, finishing up the drawing and putting in the final touches to the hair, when the bell rang.

Everyone jumped up at the same time, grabbing their backpacks, throwing their books in the cabinet, gigging and conversating with their friends. Kaoru threw her bag over her shoulder, flipping her notebook closed. She was partway out the door when a hand tapped on her shoulder.

She turned around to see violet eyes, framed with red hair. Kenshin smiled, "Kaoru-dono, I have a question for you."

"What is it, Kenshin?" Shifting from one foot to the other, her heartbeat suddenly felt uncomfortable as it thundered in her chest. Kaoru gave a nervous smile.

"Are you from Tennesee?" he inquired, and her eyebrows furrowed at the odd question.

"No, why?"

"Because ten is all I see," and with that, he brushed past her, and into the crowded hallway.

"Ah! What?! Kenshin-no-baka!!"

* * *

A/N- Truwe story. I was in history class, we had nothing to do, we recited pick-up lines.

R&R


	2. A Sprained Ankle

This is always a fun topic when I go to Athletic Training, having a guy who hasn't realized how sticky tape is until it's already on their legs. Fun times.

Disclaimer - I do not own Rurouni Kenshin.

* * *

The athletic training room in a high school is where athletes go to heal their wounds, get their wrists or ankles taped to keep from hurting them, and go threw physical therapy for minor wounds, like pulled muscles or sprains. It's usually run by one certified Athletic Trainer, with two or three students who volunteer their time to learn and help their classmates.

* * *

Sano hummed nonchalantly, kicking his legs back and forth as he sat on the counter in the Athletic Training room, waiting to get his ankle taped. Small, pulsating pains shot out from his foot, reminding him of the tackle the had bent his ankle _just_ the wrong way, leaving him curing and rocking back and forth on the ground in front of his coach.

Coach quite nearly grabbed him by the scruff of his neck and threw him into the Gator, the small vehicle used to transport hurt players from the field back to the school, while Genzai-sensei hummed, talking on his cell phone, and Megumi in the back, holding his ankle as still as she could, despite the bumps on the ground, which felt like they jarred his very soul.

None the less, it made his ankle feel like his foot was about to fall off.

And so, he waited for nearly fifteen minutes, watching his little fox running around, scooping ice to put into ice bags, putting water into tanks, and setting up electrical pulses for one of his teammates who had pulled a muscle in his back. From the way Cho's back twitched and the way he gripped the bed underneath him, he was better off with a sprained ankle than a strained back.

By the time she got to him, the gum he was chewing had nearly lost its flavor, reverting to that hard, saliva-reducing state. He smiled gratefully, grabbing a tissue from next to the counter, spitting it out into the soft fabric. He aimed and shot the wad of gummy tissue, falling right into the trashcan. Shooting a sly smile, he leaned back, completely at ease, the pain shooting in his ankle barely bothering him.

"About time you got here Fox, I was really starting to get bored. What the hell was all that stuff you were doing, and why aren't those two helping?" He jerked his head towards two girls, who were yapping away. They had the same Athletic Trainer shirts Megumi had on.

Megumi ran a hand threw her hair, giving a rueful smile, "It's because I'm a freshman, I get all the work," her voice dropped down to a whisper as she leaned in, "But to tell you the truth, they're just jealous because the boys always come to me first." She giggled and winked, ready to get back to work.

Sighing, she grabbed at a roll of pre-wrap, beginning to wind it around his foot, starting right underneath his calf. She hummed softly, before her earlier smile turned to one of concentration.

He leaned back, a faint smile still on his lips, mirroring the one that had been on hers. Man, if he'd known she'd be the one to tape his ankle, he would've sprained it a long time ago. He didn't even mind being thrown into the metal gator. He watched as she carefully wound pre-wrap around his foot, stopping right before she hit his toes, winding and wrapping until she stopped at his ankle, pulling and tearing the wrap, patting it down.

Megumi did a cursory glance at the wrap, patting herself on the back mentally as she looked at the absence of air bubbles. It was a nice feeling, now came the hard part.

Sano watched in confusion as her eyebrows furrowed ever so slightly, and she got the cold, calculating look of concentration. Wasn't he done? He was about to hop off the table, when he saw her reach for a roll of medical tape, and he looked back at his legs.

His unshaven, manly legs.

It took her off guard when he jerked back, a loud curse coming from his mouth, making her blush. She held the tape half drawn, blinking and confused at his new state of panic, "Damnit Rooster-head, what's wrong?"

"What the hell are you going to do with that?" Running a hand threw his rooster-spiked hair, he tried to scootch further back on the counter. The wall behind him reminded him that he had no where to go.

"I'm going to tape your ankle, rooster-head, isn't that what you came in here for?" Megumi snapped, grabbing his foot and dragging him back. He hissed as he felt that sudden stinging of pain that happens when you move a sprained ankle. A cruel smile was his only answer, and he began to remember why he called her Fox.

And in an afterthought, he remembered that roosters were the prey of foxes.

"Ah, damnit Fox, lemme go," a hand dragged threw his hair uneasily as the image of a mauled chicken went threw his head. He tried to focus as she unrolled a bit of tape, and laid it down, half on the pre-wrap, half on his leg.

Half of that tape was on his unshaven leg.

"Ack! Fox! How the hell am I going to take this off?" He looked at the tape stuck to his skin, barely able to imagine all the leg hair that would come off if he simply ripped it off like a band aid, one of his least favorite activities when he was a kid.

"You rip it off," she said calmly, sticking a bit of tape on some more leg hair, pulling it from the inside of his ankle to the outside, where there was more hair, "It'll be just like a waxing. You'll have some nice, smooth legs for a week or two, then it'll grow back, and you'll have to do it again." She flashed him a smile, it made his insides squirm. She was enjoying this.

Oh, she was just the worst kind of person.

She did three strips that went from the inside of his ankle back to the outside, forcing his foot from rolling inside to make his sprain worse. There was a small spark of pain, before it disappeared. He hissed out loud as he watched her put the tape further onto more of his hair. She gave a cruel smile, and the third strip was nearly an inch up on his leg and leg hair.

Damn it all.

A desperate thought came to the forefront of his mind, and he pounced on it.

"Ah! Mr. Genzai! Help, Megumi's trying to kill me!"

She rolled her eyes, crossing her arms and waited for Mr. Genzai, the head Athletic Trainer, to walk over and inspect her work. The older man sighed, pinching his nose, obviously knowing very well what Sano's panic was caused by.

"Megumi-chan, that tape is a little too high on the stir-ups, but it'll do. Just try not to do it again."

Megumi covered her mouth, giggling in her fox-like way, and he could almost see her imaginary fox ears pop up and a fox tail swish, "Thank you, Genzai-sensei, I won't do it again."

Sano nearly cried as he watched the teacher walk back into his office, leaving him alone with the dreaded Fox. His hand outstretched after the aging man, silently begging for help.

He heard that dreaded sticky-sound as she pulled some more tape, wrapping it once just above his ankle bone. Away from his bare leg.

Thank Jesus.

She began twisting the tape in intricate ways, forcing his foot straight up, and his ankle straight. He hissed and tried to jerk away when she hit the arch of his foot, getting rid of any air bubbles hidden in the tape. He ignored her reassurances that it was for his own good.

Yeah. Right. He began to edge away from her, millimeter by millimeter.

Her hand gripped hard on his ankle and she glared at him, pulling his foot closer, making him slide forward. He growled.

"Oh hush up, rooster-head," she hissed in response, keeping her voice down in case Genzai was listening. His chin jerked up in defiance, and he was blind to her new, lightening quick movements.

A small stretch of tape was unrolled, attached to an unprotected part of his leg. He looked down in alarm as she growled, completely apart from her normal, playful, kitsune self. She was acting as evil as his algebra teacher, Saitoh.

"Fox! Hey, hey! No! I didn't do nothing' Fox! No!"

His screams echoed the training room and the outside gym as she ripped off the piece of tape, leg hair stuck to it, having been ripped apart from his leg. He would swear later that he saw God.

Running two of her fingers over the abused area, Megumi smiled, pleased with her work.

There were tears forming in his eyes, and he wiped them away. She saw them anyway.

Giving her haughty fox-like laugh, she walked over to the refrigerator, pulling out an ice cube and putting it against his smooth flesh, her lips still lifted in a smile of victory. It melted against his heated skin quickly, becoming nothing but a little puddle of liquid.

Sano glared at Megumi as she hummed, setting stuff up, and smiling at him, moving to the side to let him slide off of the counter and off to Football practice. He swore, and began to slide forward, when her hand at his knee stopped him.

"Wait Sano, one more thing." And with that, she leaned forward, kissing the agitated spot, leaving a lipstick lip-print on his leg.

"There. Now you won't cry every time you get your ankle taped, baka."

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A/N- Review my lovelies, and maybe I'll update. No favoriting without a review!


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